October 11, 2009

Project Management from a Distance – Intro

Posted by Brad Egeland

In this upcoming six-part series we’re going to look at and discuss everything about being a remote project manager. For the most part, it will likely apply to other members of the project team. I’ve made little secret of the fact that I believe remote project management is good, is practical for many situations, is green, and can be very rewarding. However, it must be done by the right individual with the right intentions, under the right conditions and for the right reasons.

The Six-Part Series Overview

Over the course of six articles, I intend to cover the following topics (however, I make no guarantees that I won’t shift course, remove parts or add parts depending on how the discussion is progressing):

Part 1 – Why remote?

Part 2 – Will it work for you?

Part 3 – What type of job enables remote PM?

Part 4 – What setup do you need?

Part 5 – Negotiating when it’s not an obvious move

Part 6 – Staying the course

Recognizing that remote work is not in everyone’s interest level and it’s not for everyone, I’d like to cover these topics in order and get feedback from readers on their own thoughts and experiences. It’s not a secret that this economy lends well to creativity in the workplace – it’s often necessary to stay employed and for companies to keep as many employees as possible.

In the coming articles, we’ll examine why you should work remotely (both from the employee viewpoint and from the employer), what type of individual and mindset it takes to successfully work remotely, what type of projects work well in a remote management situation, what do you need to setup shop to work remotely, how to go about negotiating a remote situation when it’s not an obvious option, and staying on course and remaining both happy in this type environment as well as relevant in the workplace and to your employer or clients.

Some Interesting Data

Before move any further in the discussion of remote project management – here are some interesting numbers on remote IT workers (source in parentheses):

70% said they would rather get their work done on a secure connection even if it meant their work would be late (CIO.com)
78% say their IT dept. has provided them with the technology to work remotely on their own PC rather than needing to rely on a company-issued laptop (I personally don’t see this as a good thing) (CIO.com)
43% of downloaded personal pictures, videos, or software for their own use on company-issued laptops (CIO.com)
25% admitted they’ve visited blacklisted of inappropriate websites on their company-issued laptops (CIO.com)
74% said they can’t get their work down without the internet (CIO.com)
65% said it would be easier to live without their car for a week than live without the internet for a week (CIO.com)
12% admit hacking a neighbor’s wireless connection when necessary (Cisco study)
21% allow friends and family to access the internet on their work-supplied computer (unknown source)

These figures weren’t meant to scare anyone away from remote work but rather to inform you of what’s going on in and out of the workplace. Whether you use your own equipment or company-supplied equipment, be aware that you’re responsible for critical data and for the timelines of the projects you manage – be prudent in the way you handle yourself and the resources you utilize.

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